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Make a Garden Planter From an Old Dining Table

Introduction: Make a Garden Planter From an Old Dining Table

In this Instructable I will be explaining how I turned this old dining table into an attractive garden planter.

Step 1: Getting a Table

First thing I needed was a table and I found this one in the free section on Gumtree. Fortunately I remembered to take a saw when I picked it up as it was a bit big for the car and needed its legs shortening a touch, which I had intended to do anyway, just not at the side of the road.

Step 2: Chopping It Up

The first thing I did was make two parallel cuts through the table top using a circular saw fitted with a cutting guide to ensure both cuts were straight and the same distance from the edge. Once this was done there were a few screws to remove before the centre piece of the table top came away. Then I cut through the supports and sanded back where they had joined the legs.

Step 3: Reconstructing the Frame

Next step was to decide how wide to rebuild the frame and this was limited by how I was going to use the large piece of table top I removed earlier. I wanted to use this piece to form both the base of the planter and to make two end pieces to complete the lip around the top. I laid the two halves of table on the floor and played with the width until I found the best distance apart to give the best use of the wood. I then cut down the pieces of support I removed earlier and used them to join the two halves together. I used 3 100mm screws on each leg which I countersunk quite deeply because the legs were so thick, once they were in I used wood filler to close the holes.

Step 4: Finishing the Top

Then I split the large piece of table top in two according to my earlier measurements. Because the cut was too far from the edge to use the cutting guide, I marked my line and then screwed a scrap piece of timber to the table top to act as a guide to give me a straight cut. A table saw would have been easier but I don't have one of those so I improvised.

Once this was done I cut off two pieces to complete the planters top and keep the original tables rounded edge all the way around. I fixed these in place with wood screws which I again countersunk before covering them with wood filler. I then sanded and hoovered the whole thing.

Step 5: Fitting the Base

Next step was to trim up the other piece of the table top to form the planters base. I cut it to size with the circular saw before cutting the corners out with a handsaw to fit around the legs. Once it was in place I fixed it with a lot of wood screws since once it was finished it would have to support the weight of being filled with compost and soil.

Step 6: Painting

Finally I gave the whole thing another light sanding and painted it all with two coats of an exterior wood paint.

Step 7: Finished

Thats it, I hope you enjoyed reading this Instructable and please let me know if you try and build this yourself. Check out my other projects and also my Youtube channel where I try and upload new content at least once a week. If you want to support me then head on over to my Patreon page where you can help me create bigger and better projects with a small donation.

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2 Comments

thanks, actually when I was building it I did think about fixing the base lower down to form a low shelf and then finding a piece of glass or cast iron to use as a centrepiece for the top. Oh well, future project perhaps.

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